The level of air pollution in Silesia has been rising consistently, and suspended particulates and ozone keep exceeding the norms. In this context, cutting down trees in cities adversely affects the health and quality of life of their residents. Access to information about tree stand has been limited, the principles of tree removal have been unclear, and compensatory planting has been insufficient and conducted outside city centres. All this has slowly changed Silesian cities into a concrete desert.
The objective of the project was to introduce the rule of compensation for the losses caused by tree removal, in accordance with the principles of sustainable development.
The project included collecting data on tree removal and compensatory planting from all 26 districts of the Silesian voivodeship, and from the State Forests. The data was published on the ratujdrzewa.pl website. The law on environmental protection was amended during the project, changing the principles of tree removal, so for the time being it is difficult to evaluate the project’s outcomes.
The organisation used the regulations on access to public data and to information about the environment, in order to collect data about tree removal and planting in all 26 districts of Silesia. It then published the data on the ratujdrzewa.pl website. In the 19 monitored cities and towns meetings with activists, officials and residents were held to discuss local regulations on tree protection and potential changes. An expert report was prepared, about compensatory planting in the cities in accordance with the principle of sustainable growth and natural protection.
The beneficiaries of the project were the residents of the Silesian region and civil servants.